Today, European transport ministers are having a first discussion on the mobility initiatives recently presented by the European Commission. While they are a step in the right direction, the Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) urges the Transport Council to help deliver the ambitions of the 2011 Transport White Paper. The internalisation of external costs, including wear and tear, should be mandatory by 2020. It is high time to move towards that goal.

CER Executive Director Libor Lochman said: “Now is the time to create a level playing field among different modes of transport. Distance-based infrastructure charging on roads is a pre-condition for fair intermodal competition. Railways already pay distance-based track access charges everywhere in the EU. By contrast, even for major roads, charges (vignettes or tolls) are currently only applied on about 20-25% of the network in Europe. We hope EU Member States will step up their commitment to reducing transport’s CO2 emissions and quickly agree on the right measures to reach that goal.”